Day 28 - Chillicothe, MO to Kirksville, MO
74.6 miles official miles
5:39 bike time
5,363 feet of climbing
Today was the day of 148 hills. I petition Kathryn Harris for a recount. There had to be some hills not counted and some of the hills were criminal. Who the heck knew Missouri had so many hills. Kirksville, where we are staying is home to 1000 Hills State Park. I think it is time to move on to Illinois. It was another tough day with the wind. The National Weather Service said that the winds were 15mph gusting to 25. Tomorrow calls for more headwinds. I think we are just used to it now, so I’ll put the wine (whine) back in the bottle. I have thought about hiring a shaman to see if he can perform a southwest wind dance.
Today, with about ten miles to go today, I rounded a corner and found Miguel sprawled out in someone’s yard stretching resting. It was a very nice yard. He looked so comfortable, but I had to get him up. It’s like freezing to death; you get this warm comfortable feeling and then can’t go any further and you die. He made it. It was
I knew my legs would be sore this morning, but my nipples? Hey, I’m serious here. They were rubbed raw yesterday from my bike jersey. When the bike jersey gets wet and you climb a lot, it tends to rub the nipples raw. So, I thought about going to buy a training bra, but instead opted for taping band-aids over the nipples. It wasn’t pretty, but it was effective. I’d be careful about trying this at home. Someone might report you to the authorities.
The day started off with us taking Highway 36 to Brookville. The road was really bad and the shoulder was not ridable. It made for a dangerous stretch, but we eventually switched to Highway 11. The road was very good and very scenic. If I was in a car, this would have been a great drive. If I hijacked a car, would the police classify it as a joy ride or an act of desperation? Missouri incidentally seems to name all of their side roads alphabetically. We saw road A, B, C, etc. I think we were on the F road. This doesn’t speak much for their inventiveness, but remember this is the “Show Me State”. After yesterday’s drivers, we’ve renamed it the “I’ll Show You State”.
I’ve decided I’m never going to eat another sweet thing in my life. I HATE sugar. OK, I got that out of my system. The SAG stops are always full of snacks, Gatorade, goo and candy bars. I just can’t eat any more of them. My wife will be most pleased that I have satisfied any desire I ever had for sweets. I did eat a cherry pie (not a piece, but the pie). It was one of the little packaged pies and had 450 calories, 270 from fat. Couple that with Gatorade and a peanut butter sandwich and goo and you have a full nutritious meal. I should just put a stick of butter in my pocket, but I guess it would melt. Also, maybe I’d confuse it with the other butt’r. You know the one for the bum.
Margaret gave me a hard time today about not having my flag on. For Margaret giving someone a hard time is a firm “please”. She is worried about me getting hit by a car. What I didn’t tell her is that is the intention. I just need a car to slightly hit me so I can SAG for a few days in the van. I may hire the pickup that Jed tried to buy yesterday. Then I get the sympathy vote and the van ride. On second thought, I guess I’ll just have to keep pedaling.
Thanks for all the nice encouraging emails, I think it really helped me get through today. The legs were talking with me a bit, but perseverance paid off. If you have an inkling, send me a wee note (Grainne’s saying). It always helps.
Signing off……..
